In general, buildings, as well as exterior and interior walls, are constructed using linear, e.g. substantially straight, materials. For example, framing lumber and steel studs and beams are typically supplied in a rectilinear configuration. When building walls, these materials are usually set at right angles to one another to form square or rectangular interior spaces. A difficulty occurs when a builder, homeowner, or architect wishes to incorporate curved walls into a structure.
Walls are most often constructed by attaching a base plate or shoe and one or two plates to a number of studs usually spaced 16 to 24 inches apart. These standard walls are usually built on a floor in a prone position and then “stood up” into place. Historically, this has not been the situation where curved walls are desired.
In the past, curved walls were built in place on a curved, custom cut, base plate. If, for example, a curved wall was to be made using 2 inch by 4 inch material a large number of consecutive cuts had to be made in the base and top plates in order to allow the material to be bent into an arc. This can be extremely tedious and time consuming and results in pieces of material with little to no structural integrity. In addition, since most of the material is lost to the cuts that must be made, attachment to studs or wall board is difficult if not impossible. Accordingly, the walls must be sheathed in a material with sufficient strength and rigidity to compensate for that loss in the base and top plates. Usually this requires the use of plywood or like material. Depending on the size and radius of the curve several sheets of plywood may be required. This causes a great deal of waste to be generated.
Another difficulty sometimes occurs regarding the building of straight walls. It can be difficult, particularly when remodeling existing structures to frame a wall and have it fit exactly between two existing walls. This is due in part to the fact that existing walls are rarely straight. In addition, human error can also be an issue. Accordingly, there is presently a need for a manner by which one can adjust the length of a wall once it is built so that precise fits between existing walls can be accomplished.
Based on the foregoing, it is the general object of the present invention to overcome or improve upon the problems and drawbacks of the prior art.